Name: Monika & Adam Bronikowscy
Company: HOLA Design
Position within company: co-founders and co-owners
Website: https://hola-design.pl/
Tell us a little about your background in design (education, experience, etc)
This year is special for us. We are now celebrating the 15th anniversary of the HOLA Design studio. These 15 years were a time of intensive development and hard work. They brought fantastic results: hundreds of satisfied customers and several dozen implemented projects annually. Recently, also in architecture. HOLA Design has become the beginning for the entire design group, which now includes, among others, EXTERIO architectural office. Together, we create dream homes for clients who benefit from both our architecture and interior design.
How would you describe your personal design style?
For us personally, this is being ‘out of trend’. We have been working in our profession long enough to be able to find out that fashionable elements of interior furnishings very quickly become outdated. That is why we chose a different path: a calm search for answers to customer needs, regardless of trends, in very different styles. We believe that diversity is where our strength lies. We also invariably remember that we work for clients on a daily basis and not for ourselves. It is them that ultimately suits the project. They will live in this space. Despite our many successes, we still have great humility to our work.
Where does your design inspiration come from?
Our inspirations usually come from three sources. It’s Nature, Everyday Life and Travels. An example of how we use these inspirations is, among others our Shepherd’s Cottage. This is a holiday home, created by us in a picturesque place, nearby the Czorsztyńskie Lake. When designing it, we were inspired by the stunning view, local materials and traditional craftsmanship. The house has been awarded many times in Poland and abroad, and has also become a tourist attraction. We assume that in that case the inspirations were put to good use by us.
In what direction do you feel that design is moving towards in a general sense?
We are moving towards ecology, but we are going very slowly. It is a huge civilization challenge. Here every effort, every attempt matter. Each piece of furniture recovered, not thrown away, each device repaired, and each material reused, is another step forward. We often try to emphasize it in our media statements, at our public presentations. It is extremely important for us – professionally and privately.
Name five key themes to consider when approaching design in 2020 and beyond.
- Pro-nature: re-use and recycling
- Personalization
- Multifunctional interior in the COVID-19 era
- Relief and psychological comfort resulting from being at home
- Escape from artificial materials and surfaces
If you could offer one piece of advice when it comes to design schemes, what would it be?
Be yourself. Do not succumb to fashions and surroundings. The most important thing is the sense and functionality of the project, aesthetics is only the final chord.
How important are The International Design & Architecture Awards?
We value these awards very much for their educational impact on the market. The winners always represent high quality. We can inspire each other on an international scale.
What projects are you currently working on?
We develop comprehensive customer service in the areas of both architecture and interior design. Such comprehensive cooperation with clients gives us the most joy and satisfaction.
What are your aims and goals for the next twelve months?
Currently, due to health and pandemic issues, it is a bit more difficult to plan specific actions. But our goals are clearly set. It is an additional improvement of remote customer service and development of operations on the international market.
Final thoughts; tell us a little more about yourself and your daily inspirations:
Our favourite holiday destination is our summer house in the Polish mountains. We also love Portugal, to which we travel often on business. We like the cuisine best in Thailand. Both in travels and in everyday life, we like to listen to jazz (recently especially Eva Cassidy). We read international and Polish literature. From our native authors, we recommend, among others the bestsellers by Szczepan Twardoch. In addition to reading books, we spend our free time playing with children, horse riding (Monika) and mountain biking (Adam). It is sport and sport-related businesses that are our plan B for life. But still architecture and interior design are at the heart of our professional lives, and let it remain so!
HOLA Design have been shortlisted for Living Space – Europe Award in The International Design & Architecture Awards 2020.
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